You De Treat Women the Way Jehovah De Treat Them?
WE DE happy say we de worship Jehovah with many sisters wey hold-am tight. We really love each one of them and we value the work wey them de do! So, brothers, make we treat them well and show say we respect them. But because we no perfect, sometimes e no de easy for us. And some culture de make-am hard more for some brothers to treat women well.
Some of our brothers grow for area wey men de treat women like say them no get value. For example, Brother Hans wey be circuit overseer for Bolivia talk say: “Some men grow for area wey people de encourage men make them carry shoulder up. Them believe say them better pass women and this one no de make them treat women well.” Brother Shengxian wey be elder for Taiwan talk say: “For the area where I grow, women no de put mouth for matter wey men de talk about. If men de discuss and one of them talk wetin im wife think about the matter, im friends go laugh-am and tell-am say no be man e be.” But for other area, men de show say them better pass women for other ways. For example, them fit talk joke wey show say them no de respect women.
We happy say no matter the area wey any brother grow, e fit change. E fit stop to think say men better pass women. (Eph. 4:22-24) To fit do this one, e need to copy Jehovah example. For this article, we go talk about how Jehovah de treat women, how brothers fit copy Jehovah example, and how elders fit show good example for the way them de treat sisters.
HOW JEHOVAH DE TREAT WOMEN?
Jehovah na the best example of Person wey de treat women well. Jehovah na Papa wey de feel for im children, and e love all of them. (John 3:16) And sisters wey hold-am tight, dey special to-am. Make we talk about some ways wey Jehovah don show say e love and respect women.
E value women the same way e value men. Jehovah make men and women for im image. (Gen. 1:27) E no make men to get sense or sabi do things pass women. And e no like men pass women. (2 Chron. 19:7) E make men and women to fit understand the truth from Bible and to fit copy im better-better character. Jehovah value men and women wey worship-am well, the same way. E don give men and women the hope to live for Paradise or to rule with Jesus for heaven. (2 Pet. 1:1, ftn.) E dey clear say Jehovah no de do women partial.
Jehovah de listen to women. Jehovah really care about how women de feel and the problem wey them de face. For example, e listen to the prayer of Rachel and Hannah and answer them. (Gen. 30:22; 1 Sam. 1:10, 11, 19, 20) Jehovah still use holy spirit move some men wey write Bible, to write about some men wey listen to women. For example, Abraham obey Jehovah when E tell-am say make e listen to im wife, Sarah. (Gen. 21:12-14) King David listen to Abigail and this one make-am no do wetin e be get for mind. In fact, David feel say na Jehovah send Abigail to come talk to-am. (1 Sam. 25:32-35) Jesus wey be the best example of Person wey copy Jehovah example, listen to Mary wey be im mama. (John 2:3-10) All this example show us one way wey Jehovah de show say e respect women. E do this one as e listen to them.
E trust them. For example, Jehovah trust Eve, na im make-am talk say make e join Adam care for the whole earth. (Gen. 1:28) This one show say Jehovah no see Eve as person wey no dey important, but e see-am as helper to Adam. Jehovah trust Deborah and Huldah, na im make-am give them message to advice im people. And e even use them to advice one king and one judge. (Judg. 4:4-9; 2 Ki. 22:14-20) Today, Jehovah trust sisters, na im make e give them work for im organization. Them de serve as publishers, some na pioneers, and some na missionary. Some of them de draw plan wey our organization de use build and some de join build and maintain Kingdom Halls and branch office. Some de work for Bethel and some others de work for remote translation office. This sisters just be like plenty soldiers wey Jehovah de use do im work. (Ps. 68:11) So e clear say Jehovah trust women say them fit do plenty things for im organization.
HOW BROTHERS FIT COPY JEHOVAH EXAMPLE?
Brothers, to know whether we de treat sisters the way Jehovah de treat them, we need to really check ourself to see wetin we de think about them and how we de really treat them. But, we need help to fit do this one. Just as doctor de use machine check if person get problem for im heart, na so good friends and Bible fit help us know if the way we de see and treat women de make Jehovah happy. Wetin we go do to get this help.
Ask person wey go tell you the truth. (Prov. 18:17) See some questions wey you fit ask person wey you dey sure say go tell you truth: “How you think say I de treat sisters? Them de feel say I de respect them? Wetin I fit do so that the way I de treat them go better pass before? If the person tell you some things wey you need to correct, no follow-am argue or de defend yourself. Instead, make you make up your mind to correct the way you de treat them.
Study Bible. The best way to know if we de treat sisters well, na to use Bible check the way we de think about them, and treat them. (Heb. 4:12) When we study Bible, we go learn about men wey treat women well and the ones wey no treat them well. Then we go fit compare the way we de treat women with the way them treat women. Another thing be say we no go just read one Bible verse, but we go compare different-different Bible verse wey talk about women. E go help us no de use one Bible verse wey we read support the bad idea wey we fit get for mind about women. For example, 1 Peter 3:7 talk say make husband honor im wife because e “be like something wey dey easy to break.” a This one mean say e no get sense or sabi do things reach the man? No! If you compare wetin apostle Peter talk with wetin apostle Paul talk for Galatians 3:26-29, you go see say Jehovah choose men and women to rule with Jesus for heaven. When we study Bible and ask person wey go fit tell us the truth about how we de treat women, e go help us know wetin we need to do to show say we de respect our sisters.
HOW ELDERS FIT SHOW SAY THEM RESPECT SISTERS?
Brothers for congregation fit learn how to respect sisters, from the example of elders. How elders de show better example for the way them de respect sisters? Make we talk about some ways.
Elders de praise sisters for the things wey them de do. Apostle Paul na better example wey elders fit copy. For the letter wey e write to the congregation for Rome, apostle Paul praise plenty sisters for the things wey them do. (Rom. 16:12) Just think how the sisters go don happy well-well as them read their name for congregation. Just like Paul, elders de praise sisters for their better-better character and the work wey them de do for Jehovah. This one de help sisters know say brothers and sisters for congregation love them and respect them. This kind praise fit be wetin our sisters need to fit continue to do their best as them de worship Jehovah.—Prov. 15:23.
Praise them
When elder de praise sister, make wetin e de talk come from im heart and make e talk the exact thing wey e de praise-am for. Why? One sister wey im name na Jessica talk say: “E good when brothers tell sisters say, ‘well done!’ But wetin de make us happy pass na when brothers tell us the exact thing wey we do, wey make them de praise us. For example, e fit be because we de teach our children make them no disturb for meeting or because we go Bible student house, go carry-am come meeting.” When elders praise sisters like this, e de help them know say we value them for congregation.
Elders de listen to sisters. Elder wey de carry body down know say no be only im get better idea. This kind elder, go allow sisters give their idea and really listen when them de talk. When elders do like this, e go encourage sisters, and the elders self go gain. How? One elder wey im name na Gerardo, wey de work for Bethel talk say: “I don see-am say to de ask sisters for their idea, de help me fit do my work well. Many times, them don do the work plenty years pass the brothers.” For many congregation, na sisters pioneer pass, so them sabi the kind people wey dey the area. One elder wey im name na Bryan talk say: “Our sisters get many better-better character and sabi plenty things, and this one make Jehovah organization need them. So, make we de gain from our sisters!”
Listen to them
Elders wey de copy Jehovah example ready to listen to sisters when them give their idea. Why? One elder wey im name na Edward talk say: “When elder listen to idea from sister or listen to-am when e de talk about wetin e don face, this one fit help-am understand the matter wey dey ground well-well, and how other people de feel. (Prov. 1:5) Even if the elder no go fit follow the idea wey the sister give-am that time, e go still need to thank-am for wetin e talk.
Elders de train sisters. Elder wey de copy Jehovah example de try look for opportunity to train sisters. For example, elders fit teach sisters how to do meeting for field service if brother wey don baptize no dey. Them fit train sisters to fit use some machines and other things wey them de use build and maintain Kingdom Halls, Assembly Halls and other buildings wey Jehovah organization de use. For Bethel, overseers de train sisters to fit do different-different work, like maintenance, accounting, to de program computer, to de buy things, and do many other things. When elders de train sisters, e de show say them trust the sisters say them go fit do the work well.
Train them
Many sisters de use the things wey elders teach them, to help other people. For example, some sisters de use wetin them learn when them join build for our organization, help people build their house again, when something like rain scatter their house. Some sisters wey elders don train to do cart witnessing, don train other sisters to fit do-am. How sisters de feel about the elders wey train them? One sister wey im name na Jennifer talk say: “When I join build one Kingdom Hall, one elder do im best to train me. E check the work wey I do and praise me for the work. I like to de work with-am because e make me feel say e trust me and say I get value.”
WETIN WE DE GAIN WHEN WE TREAT OUR SISTERS THE WAY JEHOVAH DE TREAT THEM?
We love our sisters the way Jehovah love them! So, we de treat them well like family members. (1 Tim. 5:1, 2) We value them and e de sweet us to work with them. E de make us happy when them see-am by theirself say we love them and support them. One sister wey im name na Vanessa talk say: “I thank Jehovah say I dey im organization, and plenty brothers dey there wey de encourage me.” One sister for Taiwan talk say: “I really happy say Jehovah and im organization value women and de respect them. This one de make my faith strong and I happy well-well say I dey Jehovah organization.”
Jehovah de really happy when e see say brothers de do their best to treat women the way e de treat them. (Prov. 27:11) One elder for Scotland wey im name na Benjamin talk say: “Many men for this world today no de respect women. So when women come Kingdom Hall, we want make them see say we love them and respect them.” Make all of us continue to do our best to copy the way Jehovah de treat women, and de show say we love and respect our sisters.—Rom. 12:10.
a To learn more about wetin Bible mean when e say women “be like something wey dey easy to break,” check the article wey the title na “The Value of ‘a Weaker Vessel’” for May 15, 2006 Watchtower, and “Wise Guidance for Married Couples” for March 1, 2005, Watchtower.